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Baylor Football

Weekend Review: Oklahoma State escapes while Baylor waits another week

September 21, 2020
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Another week has gone by in College Football and it may have been the slowest and least eventful week in history.

Louisiana got a scare after their big win over Iowa State, but the Ragin Cajuns pulled it out over Georgia State, 34,31. Miami and Louisville played maybe the most evenly matched game as the only ranked vs. ranked game of the weekend, but the Hurricanes looked far better than the Cardinals in a  47-34 victory. Former Houston quarterback D’Eriq King threw for 325 yards and three touchdowns on 18-of-30 passing.

In the Big 12’s lone game of the weekend, Oklahoma Sttate needed a tough fought fourth quarter to beat former Baylor quarterback Zach Smith and the Tulsa Hurricanes in a game that was surprisingly low scoring offensive. And as you already know, we have to wait at least one more week to see Baylor open their season. 

For Mike Gundy’s Cowboys, a team I expected to be contenders in the Big 12 this fall, I haven’t lost all hope yet and still expect them to do just that if sophomore quarterback Spencer Sanders can come back healthy after suffering a high ankle injury in the first quarter on Saturday. That overall performance was not inspiring in the slightest, however. It was good to see Smith hold his own for a while, but it was a very blah game overall. The Pokes survived 16-7.

Unfortunately, this is what I think we will see in college football for the next couple of weeks as teams return to the playing field consistently. Until teams get into a normal rhythm, games will look a lot like they have the past two weeks. And what else could you expect from such a bizarre year? But hey, at least they are playing. 

That leads us to Baylor, one of the most unfortunate teams in college football who is still supposed to be playing this fall. Before we get to they why’s and how’s of next week, I want to talk about the drag that COVID-19 puts on everyone.

Three different season openers have been canceled for the Bears, and if you listened to Mack Rhoades on SicEm365 Radio on Friday, you can tell the emotional toll that it has had on the entire athletic department as the horrible wheel of destiny that is COVID-19 is impossible to predict. Teams can have protocols, testing and social distance, but in the end, all it takes is one person getting the virus and spreading, or coming in contact with a teammate, before they know they have it. In response, we are all left wanting and waiting another week.

The constant ups and downs are hard on the players, coaches and the administration that are trying to make this work in a world that makes less sense by the day. 

So here’s what I would suggest we all do. Stop trying to wrestle with the rules of testing, contact tracing, etc. They are what they are. Stop trying to wrap your head around why and how. Do your best to be hopeful that it gets cleared up and the Bears are running out of the tunnel to face Kansas on Saturday. What if’s are pointless and will only lead you to more stress. 

Do all the rules make perfect sense? No. But what about 2020 has made perfect sense? We are on a ride that we can’t get off of on our own. And that doesn’t mean it has to stress us out as fans any more than we normally do. One day this will be over.

Until then, let’s be happy that we have something. 

 
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